Use the Summary area below to collaborate with your group to create your summary of the connections between white privilege, the colorblind perspective, and social dominance theory.
Press Save on the Editor bar.
Note: Please be sure to note at the end who wrote the information. Your group summary should demonstrate your collaboration rather than being a collection of unconnected individual ideas. When your group decides that the summary is finished, have one group member remove "(Draft)" below so your facilitator will know that it is ready for review. -I can be pretty sure that my neighbors in such a location will be neutral or pleasant to me.
Having lived in the country with minimal neighbors growing up, I was excited to move into my first house being surrounded by neighbors. I assumed that our neighbors would introduce themselves and welcome us to the neighborhood. Now that I have lived here over a year, I realize that I will not be getting the welcome I was anticipating. Being white and moving into a predominately white neighborhood I never attributed the coldness to my ethnicity. I never had to worry about the way my neighbors might feel about me moving into their neighborhood. I can’t imagine feeling unwanted in your own house due to your neighbor’s view of your race. (Neighborhoods do so many different things to invite new neighbors. People seem to be so busy these days. SR)
-I can turn on the television or open to the front page of the paper and see people of my race widely represented.
I have talked about this a lot in other posts but we all need to see ourselves in both media and print. It gives us a sense of belonging and feeling a part of our society.
-I can go into a music shop and count on finding the music of my race represented, into a supermarket and find the staple foods which fit with my cultural traditions, into a hairdresser’s shop and find someone who can cut my hair.
This especially hits home for my poor brother. He has suffered through many horrible haircuts because we could not find someone who could cut Asian hair. Now that he is sixteen, we have finally found a barber who gives him a good haircut. Ironically my brother is the one person in my family who is not crazy about Korean food. The one food he does love is rice. The closest store that sells Korean rice (and not the horrible minute rice) is 45 minutes away. This would be very frustrating for Asian families who eat rice as a staple in their homes.
-I can choose blemish cover or bandages in “flesh” color and have them more or less match my skin.
I was completely oblivious to the fact that bandaids were made to be “flesh” colored until I was in college. One of my college professors was teaching a lesson similar to one we are completing now about white privileges. Due to the many shades of people it is ridiculous that a company would make only one color of their product and calling it flesh colored. (This is something that floored me at first also. It never even dawned on me. SR)
-I can if I wish arrange to be in the company of people of my race most of the time.
I was again oblivious to thinking about being around people of the same ethnicity until seeing instances where my brother was the only Asian. He went to a small Christian school and went through many years of being the only Asian in his class. In later years the school did have an exchange program with students from Korea. Peter loved getting to learn more about the Korean culture. He still noticed that the only other Asians were not Asian American. In some way he still felt singled in both groups.
-Abbey Juzwiak
Ican be pretty sure that if I ask to talk to “the person in charge,” I will be facing a person of my race.
This seems important to me because if there are cultural differences between people that may be misunderstood within translation or communication, this could be frustrating. I am imagining working with a complaint at a restaurant or store. Perhaps it would be intimidating to feel your race played a role in the complaint or the way it was handled. I have had meals discounted after complaining. I would feel uncomfortable if this occurred for any reason other than the complaint.
If a traffic cop pulls me over or if the IRS audits my tax return, I can be sure I haven’t been singled out because of my race.
Situations such as an IRS audit or a traffic ticket are frustrating enough for me, let alone the added concern of racial profiling.
I can easily buy posters, post-cards, picture books, greeting cards, dolls, toys, and children’s magazines featuring people of my race.
Because I am a parent, I have frequently gone to book stores and libraries to find books to help my kids deal with specific problems. I could see their confusion or disassociation with the problem at hand if race was an issue. Kids really need to see kids exactly like themselves in books. This helps them feel secure and I see this often. My 4 year old often looks for characters that look like her in the stories we read.
I can go home from most meetings of organizations I belong to feeling somewhat tied in, rather than isolated, out-of-place, outnumbered, unheard, held at a distance, or feared.
I am a member of several community organizations and groups. I enjoy feeling involved and connected to my community within these groups. The notion that someone could feel feared due to their race seems very sad to me. It is important that all community members have a voice within organizations and not inhibited by their race.
I can take a job with an affirmative action employer without having coworkers on the job suspect that I got it because of race.
Most of the friends I have I have made at work at different jobs I’ve had. It would be difficult, perhaps, to form these friendships if people were suspect of my intentions. This could put a serious damper on friendships, which are such an important part of every person’s life. (These friendships provide us the opportunities to engage in conversations about race. SR)
Katie
The following five privileges stand out to me:
1. I can turn on the television or open to the front page of the paper and see people of my race widely represented.
The majority of TV presenters, actors and actresses are white. While I have noticed that the number of African Americans in the media has slightly increased in the last few years, I have not noticed many Asians and Native Americans. They seem to be entirely underrepresented. It must be difficult for people of other races to watch movies whose characters are white and who they cannot relate to. (Or when they are represented, the image is often times skewed. SR) 2. I can be sure that my children will be given curricular materials that testify to the existence of their race. Stories and history books are dominated by representatives of white race. Book characters of other races are scarce and require more of an effort to find in libraries and bookstores. History books also focus predominantly on white history. As a small child I loved fairy tales and would imagine myself as characters from books who were always white. It must be confusing for a child of a different race and they may question why they look so different. 3.I can be pretty sure that if I ask to talk to “the person in charge,” I will be facing a person of my race. Whenever I visit a doctor or a dentist, they are white like me. Most of mine and my husband’s coworkers have also been white. It applies to other people I encounter on a daily basis at workplaces. If we were to examine higher level management structures in companies in North America, my guess is that the results would show they are predominantly white. Other races are underrepresented in workplaces, particularly at higher levels. (What do you think could be a reason for this? This is the same in classrooms around the United States. SR) 4. I can choose public accommodation without fearing that people of my race cannot get in or will be mistreated in the place I have chosen. This definitely applies to my experiences in Europe. While I never had major issues, my Asian friends complained about difficulty of finding accommodation or receiving mediocre customer service. I believe it is also still true in Canada, despite existing racial diversity. White people are most likely to receive better service than for example African Americans. 5. I can easily buy posters, post-cards, picture books, greeting cards, dolls, toys, and children’s magazines featuring people of my race. I have to admit that I have never seen toys in stores that would be other than white. This privilege stands out to me as it reminds me of the video included in one of the previous modules. The video showed children more likely to choose a white doll over a black doll, even though the children making choices were black. The children thought the white dolls to be more attractive and better, which may also mean that the feelings they project through the dolls reflect how they feel about themselves. Children should be provided with a variety of toys and materials that reflect their racial heritage as limiting it sends a message that white is better than other colours. (Having a bi-racial daughter, we attempt to have multiple dolls of different races. I want her to feel comfortable wherever she is. SR)
All these privileges seem to stand out to me as paradoxically they do not seem like privileges to me and appear to be a natural part of my life. They allow me to identify with characters of books and movies, be at ease in public places and interact with people who look similar to me. When I reverse the situation and put myself in the shoes of racially different individuals, I feel alienated, invisible and unimportant and deprived of any privileges. (Marz) (This is a good summary of what McIntosh was talking about. People tend to take for granted what they have. It reminds me of parables that teach people life lessons. SR)
Summary:
Howard’s theory of social dominance states that the white group constitutes the dominant group in the American society enjoying most privileges and making the most important decisions that also affect the other racial groups, even though their participation in that decision making is limited. The white group is also in denial of their dominance. McIntosh’s list of privileges also proves that the white group enjoys the superiority in the society and while they may acknowledge racism they do not claim the responsibility for it. The colourblind perspective refers to the perception of race as invisible and irrelevant and once again it’s the attitude expressed by the white race that perpetuates the state of inequality and white dominance. Therefore, these three points are all connected by the dominance of the white race that enjoys privileges at the expense of other races and denies the existence of racial inequality.
The three points are also connected in the following way: When operating under the cover of the colorblind perspective, the white dominant group participates in Howard's theory of social dominance. Also, it may be worth making the point that the white dominant group is doing these actions unknowingly to a point. Once they are made aware of the issues, as we are in this course, their actions are no longer subconscious but rather conscious choices to practice racism.
White privilege is the unrecognized advantages that whites experience by being part of the dominant society. The colorblind perspective relates directly to white privilege because the privileges are often unseen. When they are recognized, people are afraid to discuss them in fear of change or being judged as a racist. Social dominance is based on how a person views their own position and how they believe others perceive their position.
Home > Activity 4-A-3: White Privilege > Group B
Instructions:
Note:
Please be sure to note at the end who wrote the information. Your group summary should demonstrate your collaboration rather than being a collection of unconnected individual ideas. When your group decides that the summary is finished, have one group member remove "(Draft)" below so your facilitator will know that it is ready for review.
-I can be pretty sure that my neighbors in such a location will be neutral or pleasant to me.
Having lived in the country with minimal neighbors growing up, I was excited to move into my first house being surrounded by neighbors. I assumed that our neighbors would introduce themselves and welcome us to the neighborhood. Now that I have lived here over a year, I realize that I will not be getting the welcome I was anticipating. Being white and moving into a predominately white neighborhood I never attributed the coldness to my ethnicity. I never had to worry about the way my neighbors might feel about me moving into their neighborhood. I can’t imagine feeling unwanted in your own house due to your neighbor’s view of your race. (Neighborhoods do so many different things to invite new neighbors. People seem to be so busy these days. SR)
-I can turn on the television or open to the front page of the paper and see people of my race widely represented.
I have talked about this a lot in other posts but we all need to see ourselves in both media and print. It gives us a sense of belonging and feeling a part of our society.
-I can go into a music shop and count on finding the music of my race represented, into a supermarket and find the staple foods which fit with my cultural traditions, into a hairdresser’s shop and find someone who can cut my hair.
This especially hits home for my poor brother. He has suffered through many horrible haircuts because we could not find someone who could cut Asian hair. Now that he is sixteen, we have finally found a barber who gives him a good haircut. Ironically my brother is the one person in my family who is not crazy about Korean food. The one food he does love is rice. The closest store that sells Korean rice (and not the horrible minute rice) is 45 minutes away. This would be very frustrating for Asian families who eat rice as a staple in their homes.
-I can choose blemish cover or bandages in “flesh” color and have them more or less match my skin.
I was completely oblivious to the fact that bandaids were made to be “flesh” colored until I was in college. One of my college professors was teaching a lesson similar to one we are completing now about white privileges. Due to the many shades of people it is ridiculous that a company would make only one color of their product and calling it flesh colored. (This is something that floored me at first also. It never even dawned on me. SR)
-I can if I wish arrange to be in the company of people of my race most of the time.
I was again oblivious to thinking about being around people of the same ethnicity until seeing instances where my brother was the only Asian. He went to a small Christian school and went through many years of being the only Asian in his class. In later years the school did have an exchange program with students from Korea. Peter loved getting to learn more about the Korean culture. He still noticed that the only other Asians were not Asian American. In some way he still felt singled in both groups.
-Abbey Juzwiak
I can be pretty sure that if I ask to talk to “the person in charge,” I will be facing a person of my race.
This seems important to me because if there are cultural differences between people that may be misunderstood within translation or communication, this could be frustrating. I am imagining working with a complaint at a restaurant or store. Perhaps it would be intimidating to feel your race played a role in the complaint or the way it was handled. I have had meals discounted after complaining. I would feel uncomfortable if this occurred for any reason other than the complaint.
If a traffic cop pulls me over or if the IRS audits my tax return, I can be sure I haven’t been singled out because of my race.
Situations such as an IRS audit or a traffic ticket are frustrating enough for me, let alone the added concern of racial profiling.
I can easily buy posters, post-cards, picture books, greeting cards, dolls, toys, and children’s magazines featuring people of my race.
Because I am a parent, I have frequently gone to book stores and libraries to find books to help my kids deal with specific problems. I could see their confusion or disassociation with the problem at hand if race was an issue. Kids really need to see kids exactly like themselves in books. This helps them feel secure and I see this often. My 4 year old often looks for characters that look like her in the stories we read.
I can go home from most meetings of organizations I belong to feeling somewhat tied in, rather than isolated, out-of-place, outnumbered, unheard, held at a distance, or feared.
I am a member of several community organizations and groups. I enjoy feeling involved and connected to my community within these groups. The notion that someone could feel feared due to their race seems very sad to me. It is important that all community members have a voice within organizations and not inhibited by their race.
I can take a job with an affirmative action employer without having coworkers on the job suspect that I got it because of race.
Most of the friends I have I have made at work at different jobs I’ve had. It would be difficult, perhaps, to form these friendships if people were suspect of my intentions. This could put a serious damper on friendships, which are such an important part of every person’s life. (These friendships provide us the opportunities to engage in conversations about race. SR)
Katie
The following five privileges stand out to me:
1. I can turn on the television or open to the front page of the paper and see people of my race widely represented.
The majority of TV presenters, actors and actresses are white. While I have noticed that the number of African Americans in the media has slightly increased in the last few years, I have not noticed many Asians and Native Americans. They seem to be entirely underrepresented. It must be difficult for people of other races to watch movies whose characters are white and who they cannot relate to. (Or when they are represented, the image is often times skewed. SR)2. I can be sure that my children will be given curricular materials that testify to the existence of their race.
Stories and history books are dominated by representatives of white race. Book characters of other races are scarce and require more of an effort to find in libraries and bookstores. History books also focus predominantly on white history. As a small child I loved fairy tales and would imagine myself as characters from books who were always white. It must be confusing for a child of a different race and they may question why they look so different.
3. I can be pretty sure that if I ask to talk to “the person in charge,” I will be facing a person of my race.
Whenever I visit a doctor or a dentist, they are white like me. Most of mine and my husband’s coworkers have also been white. It applies to other people I encounter on a daily basis at workplaces. If we were to examine higher level management structures in companies in North America, my guess is that the results would show they are predominantly white. Other races are underrepresented in workplaces, particularly at higher levels. (What do you think could be a reason for this? This is the same in classrooms around the United States. SR)
4. I can choose public accommodation without fearing that people of my race cannot get in or will be mistreated in the place I have chosen.
This definitely applies to my experiences in Europe. While I never had major issues, my Asian friends complained about difficulty of finding accommodation or receiving mediocre customer service. I believe it is also still true in Canada, despite existing racial diversity. White people are most likely to receive better service than for example African Americans.
5. I can easily buy posters, post-cards, picture books, greeting cards, dolls, toys, and children’s magazines featuring people of my race.
I have to admit that I have never seen toys in stores that would be other than white. This privilege stands out to me as it reminds me of the video included in one of the previous modules. The video showed children more likely to choose a white doll over a black doll, even though the children making choices were black. The children thought the white dolls to be more attractive and better, which may also mean that the feelings they project through the dolls reflect how they feel about themselves. Children should be provided with a variety of toys and materials that reflect their racial heritage as limiting it sends a message that white is better than other colours. (Having a bi-racial daughter, we attempt to have multiple dolls of different races. I want her to feel comfortable wherever she is. SR)
All these privileges seem to stand out to me as paradoxically they do not seem like privileges to me and appear to be a natural part of my life. They allow me to identify with characters of books and movies, be at ease in public places and interact with people who look similar to me. When I reverse the situation and put myself in the shoes of racially different individuals, I feel alienated, invisible and unimportant and deprived of any privileges. (Marz) (This is a good summary of what McIntosh was talking about. People tend to take for granted what they have. It reminds me of parables that teach people life lessons. SR)
Summary:
Howard’s theory of social dominance states that the white group constitutes the dominant group in the American society enjoying most privileges and making the most important decisions that also affect the other racial groups, even though their participation in that decision making is limited. The white group is also in denial of their dominance. McIntosh’s list of privileges also proves that the white group enjoys the superiority in the society and while they may acknowledge racism they do not claim the responsibility for it. The colourblind perspective refers to the perception of race as invisible and irrelevant and once again it’s the attitude expressed by the white race that perpetuates the state of inequality and white dominance. Therefore, these three points are all connected by the dominance of the white race that enjoys privileges at the expense of other races and denies the existence of racial inequality.
The three points are also connected in the following way: When operating under the cover of the colorblind perspective, the white dominant group participates in Howard's theory of social dominance. Also, it may be worth making the point that the white dominant group is doing these actions unknowingly to a point. Once they are made aware of the issues, as we are in this course, their actions are no longer subconscious but rather conscious choices to practice racism.
White privilege is the unrecognized advantages that whites experience by being part of the dominant society. The colorblind perspective relates directly to white privilege because the privileges are often unseen. When they are recognized, people are afraid to discuss them in fear of change or being judged as a racist. Social dominance is based on how a person views their own position and how they believe others perceive their position.